With severe weather in the forecast, the boys and girls races at Tuesday’s cross country meet between rivals Warsaw and Wawasee were combined into one event. As it turned out, Mother Nature stayed away long enough for the 5K race to be completed, and the Tigers and Lady Tigers proved to be the storm Wawasee couldn’t weather. After honoring their seniors, both Warsaw squads dominated their Northern Lakes Conference and Kosciusko County foes. The fourth-ranked Lady Tigers improved their conference record to 3-0 with a 16-47 win over the Lady Warriors, while Warsaw’s boys team beat Wawasee 16-43, also improving to 3-0 in league action. Both Warsaw squads, relaxing a bit and working on pack running, had the top four finishers. For the Lady Tigers, seniors Hannah Dawson (20:56), Brooke Rhodes (20:56), Emma Hayward (20:56) and Claire Kehler (20:59) led the charge. The Lady Tigers had seven of the top eight female finishers, a pack that was only broken up by Wawasee sophomore Aubrey Kuhn, who finished fifth in 21:21. “We talked to the girls ahead of time, knowing the sort of meet this was gonna be, to try and set things up for our seniors to be out front ... their last home meet, let them run up in the front,” said Warsaw girls coach Scott Erba. “And then with our second-tier group, have them hold back with some different groups and help pull those girls along. Some girls took that challenge tonight, and some didn’t. We have to figure out why some of the girls didn’t want to jump up there and run like we were hoping they would. “Some girls ran great times on a Tuesday night, so that’s encouraging.” Sophomore Sierra Palmer (21:32), junior Allison Miller (21:32) and sophomore Mia Beckham (21:35) finished sixth, seventh and eighth for the Lady Tigers. For the Lady Warriors, who fell to 2-1 in conference action, freshman MacKenzie Smith was the only other team member in the top 10, as she crossed the line ninth in a time of 21:37. The Lady Warriors’ other scoring runners included junior Elizabeth Zorn (21:58) in 12th, junior Bailey Schroeder (23:13) in 19th and junior Delanie Bame (24:06) in 24th. “It was definitely a different mindset going into the race ... especially when you throw in the guys,” said Wawasee girls coach Doug Slabaugh. “That can play a mental game. I don’t think we really let that get to us. I know Warsaw kind of had their own strategy, which is fine, but I thought our girls, a couple of them, ran well and were in the mix at least. “It wasn’t a great day for us, I wasn’t too pleased with our performance. We’ve got to race tougher.” For Warsaw’s boys team, senior Owen Glogovsky finished first in a time of 17:21, while sophomores Lucas Howett (17:24) and Francisco Ramirez (17:31), and freshman Zeb Hernandez (17:37) were second, third and fourth. The Tigers had seven of the top 10 male finishers. Glogovsky, who two weeks ago set the course record at 15:48, ran a time of 15:46 in the Marion Invitational Saturday. Still recovering from a recent illness, Glogovsky was a little more relaxed Tuesday, but had a kick over the final 1,000 meters that no other competitor had. “We just told our guys we weren’t gonna go out and kill it ... we killed it Saturday,” said Warsaw boys coach Jim Mills. “They knew their capabilities. Pretty slow times, but we were pretty dominant. It’s nice because now we can really come back and work hard. It’s not that they didn’t race ... we can race a little harder, and practice a little harder.” The fifth scoring runner for Warsaw’s boys team was senior Jon Beres, who finished in a sixth-place time of 17:45. Wawasee’s scoring runners included freshman Spencer Hare (5th, 17:42), junior Sam Griner (7th, 18:04), freshman Luke Griner (8th, 18:06), freshman Ben Hoffert (11th, 19:01) and senior Jaxon Bame (13th, 19:18). Wawasee’s boys team also fell to 2-1 in conference action. Both Warsaw squads will run against NLC foes Plymouth and Concord Tuesday, while the Warriors and Lady Warriors will battle conference rivals NorthWood and Goshen Tuesday.
GIRLS – WARSAW 16, WAWASEE 47 (listed are the five scoring runners for each team) Warsaw – 1. Hannah Dawson 20:56, 2. Brooke Rhodes 20:56, 3. Emma Hayward 20:56, 4. Claire Kehler 20:59, 6. Sierra Palmer 21:32 Wawasee – 5. Aubrey Kuhn 21:21, 9. MacKenzie Smith 21:37, 12. Elizabeth Zorn 21:58, 19. Bailey Schroeder 23:13, 24. Delanie Bame 24:06 Records: Warsaw 3-0, Wawasee 2-1
BOYS – WARSAW 16, WAWASEE 43 Warsaw – 1. Owen Glogovsky 17:21, 2. Lucas Howett 17:24, 3. Francisco Ramirez 17:31, 4. Zeb Hernandez 17:37, 6. Jone Beres 17:45 Wawasee – 5. Spencer Hare 17:42, 7. Sam Griner 18:04, 8. Luke Griner 18:06, 11. Ben Hoffert 19:01, 13. Jaxon Bame 19:25 Records: Warsaw 3-0, Wawasee 2-1
